BABL at the first mile marker

It’s May 15, and for me, that is an important date. Up until now, all we’ve been experiencing is statistical noise. And despite the fact that most stats never really stabilize fully, May 15 is the date I like to use to consider the “rough realness” of where my players and teams stand.

This first clump of games has also given us a good first sense of the playability of the BABS Baseball Leagues (BABL). Using these rules, we set up an exhibition league that I am participating in, as well as eight other leagues that many of you have joined.

Here are the current standings in the BABL Exhibition League:

Team	Pts		Team	Pts
1. Matt	59.5		6. Dan	43.0
2. Rich B.	51.0		7. Ron	43.0
3. Brian	50.0		8. Rich L.	36.5
4. Greg	48.0		9. Jim	34.0
5. Tim	45.0		10. Noah	30.0

One of the things you’ll notice is how close most of us are. Eight points separate second and seventh. It’s tough to say that anyone is really out of it. If I listed all the category rankings, you’d see that even Jim and Noah have plenty of upside points to chase. What drives this parity, in part, is the narrower range inherent in a 4×4 game. But also, I think the mix of these particular categories lends itself to a tighter competition. That’s a good thing.

A few weeks ago, I asked the participants in the Exhibition league to give me their impressions of the competition and any particular challenges they faced in adjusting to this format. Most of them responded. Here are some excerpts of their thoughts (my comments are in italics):

Matt is the current leader. He had a few interesting comments:

• The standings feel more volatile at this point in the season than 5×5 leagues I’ve played in. Will this mean a more competitive league over the balance of the year?
• Fewer categories, playing time-dependent categories like PA and IP mean fewer outcomes to root for as a fan. Makes HRs, SBs, SV+H more exciting though.
• Lack of categories, transactions means positioning your team in season is really limited. Even if you have the bench to do it, the trade-offs are too simplistic to feel challenging/engaging in season. League-mates, prove me wrong!

Needless to say, playability of this format is important. We’ll circle back on this issue again later in the season.

Rich B. is currently in 2nd place despite the disadvantage of having brought his 5×5 auction bias to the draft. He also strayed from BABS’ risk management focus. “I didn’t give enough emphasis on health to accumulate AB. I thought injuries are so random that I could roll the dice and take my chances. That strategy has been brutal (he’s currently last in PA). I’m going through some growing pains on the BABS learning curve, but I’ll come out wiser and better. ”

And yet he’s still in 2nd place.

Brian is in 3rd place, up from 6th a week ago. His comment was succinct: “I miss shopping at the waiver wire to fix my draft day mistakes. Who doesn’t want the opportunity to overpay FAAB dollars for Pedro Alvarez???”

For non-Draft &Hold players, this is a definite adjustment.

Greg is in 4th place. “I’m eager to see if and how trading might be different using BABS. If the BABS scoring categories more directly reflect basic skills, it may be easier to speak the same language when comparing player values.”

This will be interesting, especially because some of the owners have embraced BABS more than others.

Tim was near the bottom of the standings when he commented; he’s now risen to 5th. “I really enjoy watching my 27 man bench. Early on, I’ve been mixing and matching lineups too often, but over time it will be a blast to see who emerges with any consistency as members of my “24 best.” Once consistent patterns unfold, I believe league trading for needs from surpluses will become the most enjoyable part of this league.”

The depth of this league has been interesting for me. In 15-team leagues with 50-player rosters, the “24 best” emerge pretty quickly and then it becomes a test of attrition. There are more weekly roster decisions in this 10-team league, but your active core still presents itself pretty quickly. At least for me.

Dan is currently in 6th place, though he was in 2nd as late as a week ago. He notes, “While preparing for and during the draft I had to continually remind myself of the league categories. That continues each week when I put together my line-up. I’m now looking more closely at how many ABs a hitter might get as a deciding factor as to who’s active. Do I use Puig with 5 games in a week or Kepler who has 7 games, but two are versus left handed starters? The pitching side is similar. I find myself using 2-start pitchers regardless of the matchups just to get the bulk IP.”

I had not considered the incremental edge one could potentially get by considering questions like these. My roster does not appear to have the level of depth that would provide that same benefit, but I need to put that on my radar now.

I am currently in 7th place, down from 4th a week ago. For me, there were two major adjustments. First was scoreboard watching and repositioning my thought process in regards to roto stats. “Oh good, he got the win” is now irrelevant. So is, “He only went 1 for 4 but at least he drove in three runs.” Wins, runs, RBIs – situational team stats – are not a part of this game. I also was caught off guard at how quickly one can plummet in the PA and IP categories. I hung on far too long with a player like Ryan McMahon. The risk of speculation is giving up a roster spot with regular playing time. You can’t do that in BABL.

Rich L. is in 8th place. “I have been beset by the bad luck of injuries to players who have had good health history. A lot of these players are now getting healthy which is a huge plus. If I had the draft to do all over I would have placed more emphasis on current major league players and less emphasis on prospects.

As the owner of Ronald Acuna, Gleyber Torres and Willie Calhoun, and with Justin Turner on the DL, Rich can’t be counted out just yet.

Jim is currently in 9th place. He notes: “All the games lost to ridiculous weather and the unfamiliar PA and IP categories have left my head spinning. I’m wondering how many PA’s all of the double headers have cost individual hitters due to not playing two games in one day. I may need to tinker with the mix of starters versus relievers in my lineup to try to find the right balance of quantity (PA, IP) to positively impact the ratio categories without hurting the counting categories too much.”

One good week could net Jim an easy 11 points, which puts him right back in the thick of it. Of course, we’re all looking for that one good week where we can grab a bunch of low-lying fruit. The point is, it’s close, and it’s early.